Alejandro's Message- September

Dear brothers and sisters in the ministry. Happy Hispanic/Latino Heritage Month! There is much to celebrate in the final preparations of the V Encuentro. First, we thank God for the episcopal ordination of our Bishop-elect Jorge Rodriguez-Novelo as Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Denver. Count on our prayers and love every day of your episcopal ministry!

Other great news is that we will personally share with our beloved Pope Francis the good news of the V Encuentro. A delegation of the V Encuentro pilgrims will visit the Holy See from September 22-27, 2016 in order to share the vision of the V Encuentro and its promise of pastoral conversion with the Holy Father. The delegation will be led by Archbishops Gustavo Garcia-Siller and José Gómez, and Bishops Nelson Perez and Arturo Cepeda. Representatives of ENAVE will also be attending. During our meeting with the Holy Father, we ask you to bless the Cross of the V Encuentro and send a message of encouragement and prayer for a very successful launch of the local process of the V Encuentro in early 2017. The delegation will offer a prayer each day for the V Encuentro. We encourage everyone and all to join in prayer with our pilgrims using the booklet available here. During our pilgrimage we will give thanks for the contributions of Laureen Aguayo, Sister Ana Maria Reha and many other leaders who have made significant contributions in preparing the V Encuentro. The V Encuentro parish package was sent to 15,000 parishes across the country! It is important that dioceses also send this package, because we know that at times we need to make several attempts in order to help others see the importance of this endeavor. In addition, V Encuentro diocesan coordinators are key people for making contact with parish priests in our dioceses. The next and very important step in preparing for the V Encuentro is the orientation for pastors and parish teams on the V Encuentro. Use this link to view the schedule of this orientation. You can also obtain all the resources to carry out the orientation, which includes the steps for forming the V Encuentro parish teams. In early October dioceses will receive materials to train these teams and leaders of small groups and communities in the use of the V Encuentro Guide. This Guide contains the V Encuentro process that will touch the lives of millions of Hispanic Catholics as well as other cultures. The V Encuentro Guide will be distributed to diocese in early December. We ask you to complete a form via this link and submit it as soon as possible to help us determine the number of copies to be sent to your diocese in early December. Dioceses that do not submit this form will not receive copies of the V Encuentro Guide. Finally, I invite you to read the articles in this month’s bulletin. They offer inspiring news and ideas of great help in Hispanic ministry and in preparing for the V Encuentro. Long live our countries of origin! Long live the Hispanic/Latino community in the United States! Long live Christ the King! Alejandro Aguilera-Titus Director of the V Encuentro Assistant Director of the Secretariat for Cultural Diversity in the Church USCCB

Alejandro Aguilera-Titus has published three articles in OCP's

Liturgia y Canción

. They are available in a bilingual version for download below.

1. Leavening for the Kingdom of God: An Urgent Call to Youth Ministry.This article contains principles for a more effective evangelization and youth. Click here to download and read.

2. Teaching the Faith in a Multicultural Community. This article contains principles for a more effective catechesis among Hispanics.Click here to download and read.

3. The Fifth Encuentro: A Missionary Call for Our Time. This article contains a brief history of the National Encuentros of Hispanic Ministry. Click here to download and read.

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